The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court Tuesday welcomed a nine-year jail sentence imposed on a Malian jihadist for destroying Timbuktu's shrines, saying it was "a warning" to others planning such attacks.

The term imposed on Ahmad al-Faqi al-Mahdi "will give warning out there for those who are committing the crimes... that this is a serious crime. It is a war crime and they will be held accountable for destroying these important sites," ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda told AFP.